The Traitors is fortunate to have a format that guarantees astonishing television no matter how it’s played. But to make a truly special series, it needs an incredible cast.
The last series of The Traitors, while undeniably entertaining, was let down by an unlikeable team of Faithful that sucked the joy out of a game. I didn’t root for a single one.
Luckily, things have changed.
Last year, the round tables were so nasty and personal that watching it felt like you’d decided to bring up Meghan Markle at a family dinner.
Dr Kasim Ahmed came under fire simply for his occupation, with Joe Scott and eventual winner Jake Brown suggesting his profession would make him the perfect traitor.
Things became so unpleasant that Kasim compared the accusations to being labelled Harold Shipman.
Minah Shanon understood the traitor brief and played a calculated strategy with equal measures of bloodthirst and heart, and she was joined by Linda Rands, an accidental icon who was utterly brilliant viewing, even if she was quite simply the worst player ever to step foot in Ardross Castle.
But the whole thing lacked any real conflict of interest and I couldn’t wait to watch a Traitor snatch the prize.
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Charlotte and her fake Welsh accent would have done it, too, had it not been for the cruel Seer twist, which enabled a fellow player to uncover a Traitor.
It ruined Charlotte’s game at the final hurdle and was, in my opinion, a deeply unfair step too far.
But that’s all in the past. We are now at the halfway mark of series four and there are so many players to love this time round, Traitor and Faithful alike, that every time someone is banished or murdered, it cuts deep. In typical Traitors fashion, one of the best characters, Judy, was the first to be banished simply for standing out of the crowd.
And this group of Faithful have genuine logic. Even when Traitor Hugo’s profession came into question, it was with good reason – he’s a barrister and yet wasn’t bringing anything to the round table.
Faithful Jessie was rightly transfixed on who was in the room when Ben said, if he was murdered that night – which he was – to look at Ross. She correctly identified that Ross was being framed.
The show’s producers have also gifted us two of the best players the show has ever seen: Faithful Harriet Tyce and Traitor Rachel Duffy.
Harriet is extremely cunning, keeping Rachel on side while almost certainly knowing she’s a Traitor.
She also wiped out the first Traitor, Hugo, with such precision and with so little to go on that I was almost convinced she must have insider knowledge as the secret Traitor herself.
But no, her instinct is just that good; she’s kept her former job as a criminal barrister a secret for now but she’s also a crime writer and it’s hard to imagine anyone more perfectly built for this game.
Rachel, meanwhile, has completely flown under the radar with the Faithful without being a wallflower.
She’s incredibly smart and bold and others have trusted her so blindly that when fellow Traitor Fiona randomly and very publicly accused her of lying (one of the stickiest situations I can recall across any series of The Traitors, domestic or international) not only did she manage to survive but she emerged with a strengthened hand.
With the exception of Harriet, I don’t know if anyone will suspect her enough to make a serious move.
It seems as if only one of them can win – but then anything can change in this game. As it stands, the only guarantee is that Rachel will either win as a Traitor or be banished by the Faithful.
And in Harriet’s case, there is room for one more in the turret after Fiona threw her grenade into the mix, needlessly blowing herself up in the process.
Matthew has quietly made his bid to be recruited as the next Traitor, but if Rachel and co-conspirator Stephen have any sense – which they clearly do – they’ll hire Harriet instead.
She was the only one who had both previous Traitors sussed, telling viewers: ‘I can only trust my judgement, and I think Fiona has been well and truly hung out to dry by Rachel. I feel that was a question of traitor on traitor tonight.’
If she can keep that information to herself until the perfect moment, she could be one of the most worthy winners the show has ever seen. The Traitors have no idea how much of a threat she really is – and that’s the single best strategy you can have.
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This show should always leave viewers conflicted. Only one team can win, and whether you’re Team Traitor or Team Faithful, you should still feel crushed when someone loses out at the end. Either way, there’s an injustice we’re forced to accept.
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Unless Harriet is recruited as a Traitor, my two favourite players – possibly ever – will remain on opposing teams so I’m destined to be gutted and delighted by the final result in equal measure. And that’s exactly how The Traitors should play out.
I feared after series three that contestants had become too attuned to the game and would start playing like producers. But this cast represents The Traitors at its very best, when only a year ago it was arguably at its worst – though even then, it was still unbeatable television.
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We might have six episodes to go, but already this is an early contender for the best series ever, even with the dire secret Traitor twist, and that is solely down to a cast that is cunning, dangerous – and immensely likable.
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